eLife

Latest preprint reviews

1. m6A epitranscriptomic modification regulates neural progenitor-to-glial cell transition in the retina

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Yanling Xin
   2. Qinghai He
   3. Huilin Liang
   4. Ke Zhang
   5. Jingyi Guo
   6. Qi Zhong
   7. Dan Chen
   8. Jinyan Li
   9. Yizhi Liu
   10. Shuyi Chen

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This work describes the function of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification in developing retina. Enriched scRNA-seq and MeRIP-seq data will be an excellent resource for neurodevelopmental community.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

2. Single-cell profiling of lncRNAs in human germ cells and molecular analysis reveals transcriptional regulation of LNC1845 on LHX8

   This article has 7 authors:

   1. Nan Wang
   2. Jing He
   3. Xiaoyu Feng
   4. Shengyou Liao
   5. Yi Zhao
   6. Fuchou Tang
   7. Kehkooi Kee

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript provides a comprehensive analysis of expression patterns and genomic features of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in the human developing gonad, using available single-cell RNA-seq datasets from both somatic and germ cells. Using multiple genetic strategies in an in vitro system of female germ cell differentiation, the study further shows a positive regulatory function of the LNC1845 lncRNA on its protein-coding neighbor LHX8, known to have a role in ovarian follicle development. This study has potential interest for reproductive biologists and for the non-coding RNA community.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #2 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

3. Distinct elongation stalls during translation are linked with distinct pathways for mRNA degradation

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Anthony J Veltri
   2. Karole N D'Orazio
   3. Laura N Lessen
   4. Raphael Loll-Krippleber
   5. Grant W Brown
   6. Rachel Green

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript will interest a large community of molecular biologists studying translation and mRNA decay. The study provides a large-scale comparison of the roles of protein factors in No-Go Decay (NGD) and Codon-Optimality-Mediated Decay (COMD) in the yeast S. cerevisiae. A major strength of the manuscript is the direct comparison between one mRNA with a single strong translational stall and another similar mRNA with many slow translation sites (caused by changes in the genetic code). The analysis of both the factors that cause decay of these mRNAs as well as the ribosome states on the different mRNAs has the potential to reveal the molecular basis for the different mechanisms of mRNA quality control.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

4. Conformational fingerprinting of allosteric modulators in metabotropic glutamate receptor 2

   This article has 6 authors:

   1. Brandon Wey-Hung Liauw
   2. Arash Foroutan
   3. Michael R Schamber
   4. Weifeng Lu
   5. Hamid Samareh Afsari
   6. Reza Vafabakhsh

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     The authors advance our understanding of the molecular underpinnings of allostery in GPCRs by showing the effects of allosteric modulators of mGluR2 on receptor conformation at distinct sites in the presence and absence of orthosteric modulators. This is important as drugs and drug candidates acting outside the site where the orthosteric or endogenous ligands bind are harder to identify. This work provides insights into allosteric changes at the level of individual receptors and provides a new path for drug discovery and is this of interest to colleagues studying GPCRs in health and disease.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1, Reviewer 2 and Reviewer #3 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

5. Impact of energy limitations on function and resilience in long-wavelength Photosystem II

   This article has 10 authors:

   1. Stefania Viola
   2. William Roseby
   3. Stefano Santabarbara
   4. Dennis Nürnberg
   5. Ricardo Assunção
   6. Holger Dau
   7. Julien Sellés
   8. Alain Boussac
   9. Andrea Fantuzzi
   10. A William Rutherford

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     The work describes the energetic constraints and preferred operating conditions of these "strategies" in particular on how nature has solved the problem of low energy "headroom'" required to prevent deleterious back reactions while maintaining efficient energy storage. The differences between the species are quite interesting and show that nature has evolved multiple solutions to fundamental limitations. Given the importance of understanding and improving the efficiency of photosynthesis, and the new insights revealed, the work will be of interest to a broad audience.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #2 agreed to share their names with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

6. Mutual interaction between visual homeostatic plasticity and sleep in adult humans

   This article has 5 authors:

   1. Danilo Menicucci
   2. Claudia Lunghi
   3. Andrea Zaccaro
   4. Maria Concetta Morrone
   5. Angelo Gemignani

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     Menicucci et al. investigate the implication of sleep in the maintenance of ocular dominance plasticity in adult humans. This is an interesting study as it shows that sleep can maintain the changes in ocular dominance obtained after applying an eye-path on the dominant eye for two hours. This contrasts with the rapid decline of these changes during quiet wake in darkness. The authors further report correlations between sleep oscillations and the magnitude of the plasticity effect. These results highlight a possible implication of sleep in a new form of plasticity

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. The reviewers remained anonymous to the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

7. Cognitive experience alters cortical involvement in goal-directed navigation

   This article has 9 authors:

   1. Charlotte Arlt
   2. Roberto Barroso-Luque
   3. Shinichiro Kira
   4. Carissa A Bruno
   5. Ningjing Xia
   6. Selmaan N Chettih
   7. Sofia Soares
   8. Noah L Pettit
   9. Christopher D Harvey

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     In this study, the role of different cortical areas on three distinct tasks all relying on the same virtual maze set-up was examined using optogenetic interventions and calcium imaging. The paper is potentially of interest to people interested in understanding the neural substrates of learning and how these can be impacted by previous knowledge and experience of stimuli. It could also be of use to behavioral neuroscientists when considering possible order effects of experiments.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

8. Artificial selection methods from evolutionary computing show promise for directed evolution of microbes

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Alexander Lalejini
   2. Emily Dolson
   3. Anya E Vostinar
   4. Luis Zaman

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This paper addresses a very notable gap that exists between evolutionary computing and experimental evolution. While artificial and computational approaches have long been used as an analogy for biological systems (with studies that have produced findings relevant for evolutionary theory), few studies have directly used methods and results from evolutionary computing to directly inform the shape and structure of experimental evolution studies. This study's approach is creative, and its approaches and results may be of use to both computational and experimental audiences. Lastly, this study can spawn future ones that draw even more connections between evolutionary computation/artificial life and evolutionary theory.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #2 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

9. Retinoic acid-gated BDNF synthesis in neuronal dendrites drives presynaptic homeostatic plasticity

   This article has 4 authors:

   1. Shruti Thapliyal
   2. Kristin L Arendt
   3. Anthony G Lau
   4. Lu Chen

   This article has been curated by 1 group:

   • Curated by eLife

     Evaluation Summary:

     This manuscript probes the mechanism of postsynaptic retinoic acid (RA) signaling on presynaptic function. BDNF has important roles in synaptic plasticity, but how retrograde BDNF signaling is controlled following synaptic inactivity is unclear. The authors use genetic tools to localize the action of different components of the pathway to pre- or post-synaptic compartments and use biochemical approaches to define a molecular link between retinoic acid and local translation of distinct BDNF transcripts. The findings presented here fill a gap in our knowledge regarding how presynaptic function is adaptively modulated by BDNF by highlighting the role of RA in this process. The experiments have been well-executed and the data provide compelling support for the model proposed by the authors.

     (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 and Reviewer #2 agreed to share their names with the authors.)

   Reviewed by eLife

10. Rhythmic coordination and ensemble dynamics in the hippocampal-prefrontal network during odor-place associative memory and decision making

    This article has 5 authors:

    1. Claire A Symanski
    2. John H Bladon
    3. Emi T Kullberg
    4. Paul Miller
    5. Shantanu P Jadhav

    This article has been curated by 1 group:

    • Curated by eLife

      Evaluation Summary:

      The authors report on the coordination mechanisms between oscillations recorded in the CA1 subfield of the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and olfactory bulb and cell ensemble activity in CA1 and prefrontal cortex that are associated with odor-cued decision making. The findings support the hypothesis that the beta rhythm plays a role in coordinating CA1-prefrontal cortex ensembles associated with an animal's accurate decisions. Sensory-guided decision-making is of broad significance to many readers who are studying executive functions and cognitive behaviors, and the observations reported in this manuscript provide insights into mechanisms that may support these functions and behaviors.

      (This preprint has been reviewed by eLife. We include the public reviews from the reviewers here; the authors also receive private feedback with suggested changes to the manuscript. Reviewer #1 agreed to share their name with the authors.)

    Reviewed by eLife